HILife Cover Story: Third Eye Blind

Courtesy Amazon

By Burl Burlingame / bburlingame@starbulletin.com

THIRD EYE BLIND Where: Pipeline Cafe, 805 Pohukaina St. When: 7 p.m. tomorrow Cost: $35 Info: 589-1999 or hsblinks.com/dc

Third Eye Blind sometimes refers to themselves as “3eb,” apparently the better to Tweet themselves.

The band name is deliberately mysterious — is it the third eye that is blind? Or the third eye-blinding? — so mysterious that the band itself is running a comment contest on their Web site to explain it. Most of the comments so far refer to the band’s stellar wonderfulness and/or drug use.

That sounds about right.

What do we know about Third Eye Blind? Precious little that isn’t filtered through PR flacks. Here’s how the current lineup describes themselves.

Singer Stephen Jenkins “lives in San Francisco and has a dog named The Boo. He enjoys composting, moving walkways, and has an overwhelming and tragic crush on Air America host Rachel Maddow.”

Drummer Brad Hargreaves “lives in the Hollywood Hills, enjoys learning new things, and has a powerful Dachshund named Shelby. They are both secretly slipping off the world.”

We asked him eight questions via e-mail; his responses were not received in time to make it into the printed version of HILife, but you can read them now.

Click here to read the original story that ran in today’s print edition.

QUESTION: How long has it been since the last record? Was there any concept behind it?

ANSWER: The last record came out in 2003. It is not a concept record. It really reflects our experiences touring over the last couple years and developing the material live.

Q: How has releasing albums changed over the years? How does internet media, downloads, digital distribution and promotion play into it?

A: It is the wild west again in the music biz and I think that is really exciting. Digital media gives bands the best opportunity to let fans know what they are truly about minus the filter of mainstream media.

Q: You guys signed originally with a label that gave you more artistic freedom. How has that changed? Do bands have to be more pro-active in promotion and touring?

A: We have always been fortunate to have artistic control over our music but there are many others aspects to promotion that we didnt have final control over at Elektra. Releasing Ursa Major, our new record, independently gives us complete control over all aspects of our band. Anybody who wants their voice to be heard in any capacity has to scratch and claw. There is a level of access to bands through the internet that didnt exist 10 years ago and bands have to embrace it.

Q: Youre currently touring with a fill-in bassist. Some bass players play with the guitars, and some bass players play along with the drummer. Which do you prefer?

A: Maybe I am biased but I believe all musicians have to play along to the drummer. Those are the rules! Abe is doing a great job on bass and I hope he continues to grow with us.

Q: Drummers are often in the back line with the amps. How do you keeptrack of whats going on?

A: We have in-ear monitors and a monitor engineer so I hear everything. EVERYTHING!

Q: How loose is ThirdEyeBlind? Are the songs arranged tightly or is there room for improv?

A: We have found more and more places for spontaneous musical moments as we have toured over the years. Everyone can play in this band and that is a real blessing when you play as many shows as we do.

Q: Have you played Hawaii before? What do you think of the islands? Is there anything here artistically or musically that has influenced you or the band? Or is it all new?

A: I love Hawaii. Who doesnt? I was lucky to visit Hawaii a few times as a child and have continued to go more and more frequently. In fact I was in Maui three months ago for a quick break before this latest tour. I love all the islands and have spent quite a bit of time in Kauai, Kona, Maui, and all over Oahu.

Q: Have you ever been surprised by anything youve learned on the road, and want to pass on as hard-won wisdom?

A: I love playing music. I suppose I would cut the traveling down if I had a choice but playing every night more than makes up for the inconvenience of travel. As far as wisdom, simple: Constantly wash your hands.